During a preview event at the New York Auto Show, Dr. Andreas Zygan, Mercedes' chief engineer for sport utility vehicles, said the concept is "unlike any we've done before."

The concept is definitely headed for production, Mercedes says, and will sit a level below the 2015 GLA compact SUV. The automaker promises top of the line driving dynamics to make the funky looking car "curve hungry," and says it combines the "best of both worlds."

Asked during the preview if the Concept Coupé SUV is a copy of the BMW X6, global communications chief Christoph Horn simply said, "customers love more choices."

Here's a closer look at the new Benz:

For its part, BMW is diving deeper into the emergent coupe-SUV segment. At the New York show, it introduced the X4, a smaller version of the successful X6. These cars all look the same: